Summer in the city

There is an awful lot to do in the city of Stockholm even if you're short of money. I love to go for a swim (150m to that!) watch a play at the park theater, work in my workshop (not at all for free, but cheep) take a stroll and watch other peolpe, mainly turists. Nice a? You don't have to buy something all the time, even though I have to catch myself from doing that...stupied credit cards!
sonja

Traffic

It is very interesting to drive around town all day. Friendly faces and nice comments about the driving. Getting eye-contact at the street-crossings with a smiling fight on "who goes first?" But also seeing how people actually risk their lives to cross a street, cars that accellarate to 100km/h just to be the first at the red light, bicycles crossing a street without looking right or left...
Today I came just before the fire brigade to an accident between a car and a moped driver. The young guy lay lifeless on the ground and the car driver totally confused as the brigade started their work. How fast things go wrong...
Watch out, please...
sonja

In the workshop

At last, silver smithing for five hours in a row. Just stopped because I was to hungry to get on. I completed an "Eye-ring". Got some good advice while making it from one of my mates in the workshop. Perfect. I really like how the silver goes from looking blackish, brownish and greyish after being in the fire, to a wonderful shining silvery surface! I hope that that is what is going on in my life as well. From broken, blackish thinking to joyful shining life!

Malum quidem nullum esse sine aliquo bono

Sonja
PS. I'll be back with a photo.

Cold in the summer

Again another cold. I was still coughing from the last one.. But the good thing is this strike, and I don't have to sit in a draughty bus all day! I will try to finnish another ring today when I've finnished my coffe. Money is not an issue but a carrot to make me work even when I don't feel for it.

What do I want?

Reading about an old missionary who died not long ago, after long and faithful service here in Sweden and abroad.
What do I want to do with my life? What kind of traces do I want to leave on this earth, if any? What do I think people will say about me when I die?

Miserere mei, Domini

sonja

Longing for the workshop

Bus and bus and bus, nothing but driving.. The strike will start again thursday, then at last, after guarding at the garage for a few hours I will be able to do some silver smithing. Yes!
The thing is that I thought that now would be a good time to work at the buses, earning some money and then after a few weeks go on with my silver.
But how can I? I really need the mixture between being creative and then something just seeing people, what is going on around Stockholm and not having to be creative. That is why the strike comes in handy, I will be able to do some jewellery sooner then I thought...

Ora et labora

sonja

Strike

It is very exciting to be a busdriver. So many interesting people drive busses. I am now learning (when we're not on strike) the different routes that starts out from my new garage. My two fellow-learning-drivers gives me a good laugh every day. One Syrian ex-taxidriver with an interest in astrology and one Swedish ex-construction builder with an old whip-lash injury. Our instructor is one of those really cherful and thorough drivers that ones upon old time used to take us around in Stockholm.
On strike we talk and laugh together with known and unknown fellows at the different strike-bases. The women are not many, I tell you, but there are some. We are represented by most nationalities in the world, it seems...I went to Gullmarsplan with a gang of five among them an ex-New Yorker who used to live in South Africa working as a pilot, flying stuff to needy people. I got there with another guy, half Austrian, half Swede who loves old russian cars and who just shaved his long beard off making his girl-friend cry!
Can you see why driving busses can be a good inspiration when trying to construct jewellery on my own in the work-shop?